Vincent Atingah penalty gives Hearts bragging rights over Kotoko

Vincent Atingah’s second half penalty earned Hearts of Oak their first victory over Kotoko in Accra as the Phobians beat their rivals 1-0.

In a game marked with several stoppages, it was Awudu Nafiu’s handball which proved to be the decisive moment as referee Samuel Sucker whistled for a penalty.

The game itself began on a mysterious note as three Hearts players went down in quick succession without being touched by an opponent.

These theatrics did not totally distort the flow of the game as Kotoko by and large dominated the first half with the pace of Emmanuel Gyamfi , Frank Sarfo Gyamfi and Ashittey Ollenu proving a handful for Hearts.

Despite their dominance, Kotoko failed to create any clear cut chance while Hearts found it tough to string their passes together.

After recess, Hearts coach Frank Nuttall introduced Patrick Razak and the change brought a new lease of life into Hearts who began to be more threatening but their dominance dwindled a bit as the game began to become more of an even contest.

With the game heading towards an end, Kotoko introduced Baba Mahama while Hearts introduced Cosmos Dauda.Both players made important contributions as they injected pace and trickery but Cosnos Dauda had the most telling contribution with his shot coming off the head of Awudu Nafiu.

A victory for Hearts who inflict on Kotoko their first league defeat of the season